The price of packaged goods would no longer be dependent on the places you bought it as the Consumer Affairs ministry has modified the laws that oversee packaged commodities, from January 1, 2018. According to the modified Legal Metrology rules for packaged commodities, the Centre has stated that the retail sale price shall be the maximum retail price (MRP) inclusive of all taxes.
The new norms will also come with the provision to round off the price to the nearest rupee or 50 paise. It will come into effect from the next calendar year.
The move has been introduced to curb the likelihood of any vendor charging differential prices for the same product. After this, no person shall assert different MRPs on the same pre-packed commodity.
The new norms will also make sellers to improve the size of letters and numerals to clearly declare “Best before date, month and year.” This will help indicate product’s shelf life and make it easier for consumers to examine basic information.
However, for e-commerce market, declaring month and year in which a commodity is manufactured or packed is not mandatory. The Consumer Affairs ministry has put the responsibility for the reality of declarations on the producer, seller, dealer or importer.
